If you haven’t heard of or yet signed on the We Declare, now is the time.

What is We Declare? The preamble and principles listed on their website explain it best along with a video.

One principle we can easily embrace is:

Demand transportation alternatives. Invest in an integrated regional transportation system that links communities and provides citizens with access to the jobs, health care, and education they need.

You can also join We Declare on Facebook.

Here’s an exciting Journey to Detroit video that explores the types of transportation choices we could have in this area.

Notice that bike sharing systems at transit stops and hubs are among the transportation choices. There have been some preliminary discussion of bringing a bike sharing system to Detroit much like other big cities are currently doing. In speaking with NYC DOT Commissioner, she said she believes bike sharing systems will transform America’s large cities.

But what can make bike sharing systems work well is a connection to public transportation. For example, bike sharing could greatly improve the usability of the proposed M1 Rail on Woodward. Bike sharing could connect the M1 Rail to places like Corktown and Eastern Market.

Minneapolis, Minnesota recently studied public bike sharing an developed a non-profit business plan. It seems this plan could possibly be applied to Detroit.

Minneapolis will launch their “Nice Ride” bike sharing program this summer. They recently chose a vendor and will have 1,000 bikes in 80 kiosks — 65 of those kiosks by this June. It’ll be interesting to see how well their system works and how it could be replicated in Detroit.

Volume 13 Issue 1 of Libery Mutual’s Liberty Lines magazine includes ?a timeline called “Model T to Infiniti: 100 Years of Safety Innovations.”

The timeline’s introduction states that “…because of ever-increasing safety innovations, the rate of fatalities has decreased.”

That’s a pretty misleading if not dishonest statement.

Liberty Mutual’s timeline begins in 1900 when fatalities due to automobiles was a rarity nationwide. By 1907 there were roughly 500 fatalities (fewer than 6 fatalities per million Americans) which grew sharply over time.

There were over 37,000 people killed in 2008 (more than 120 fatalities per million Americans.)

That’s not a lower rate.

Perhaps the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles travel has dropped with people driving more, but that’s hardly something to celebrate when we lose the equivalent of a medium-sized U.S. city of people every year.

And about 14% of those fatalities are pedestrians and bicyclists. Looking at a rate based on vehicle miles travel only serves to hide these fatalities.

[The road fatality chart was published in Peter Norton's excellent book, Fighting Traffic.]

C and G Newspapers ran a recent article on the rail-with-trail proposal in Royal Oak:

City officials have begun to look into the possibility of a recreational trail along the railroad lines that run through the city and into the downtown. The administration was tasked at looking at the issue after Commissioner Jim Rasor brought it forward at the Jan. 25 meeting. Any potential trail would run alongside the existing railway, where there is a large amount of open area.

“This would really enhance recreation possibilities for Royal Oak and the region,” Rasor said.

Rasor said he would like to see the trail constructed from the downtown area to the northern Royal Oak boarder, which is a length of approximately four miles.

A long-range goal, Rasor said, would be to eventually link up to the Clinton River Trail in Pontiac, which runs from Pontiac to Rochester Hills and eventually dumps into the Macomb Orchard Trail, which goes 26 miles to Richmond.

Since this article was published, I’ve met with city of Royal Oak staff to discuss next steps — which is basically information gathering. I’ve also kept the Active Transportation Alliance, the organization that will create Royal Oak’s non-motorized plan, in the loop.

There was a question about whether a feasibility study was the next step. In speaking with the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy they asked. “Is it being used now?” The answer is sure. They said that if people are already using the pathway next to the rail lines then it’s feasible.

Below is a link from a 1932 article discussing the history of this rail right-of-way. “All cuts and fills were constructed for four tracks, but at present only two tracks have been laid.” Two of the lines were intended for suburban train service while the other pair for freight. As noted earlier, the third and fourth line were never added, which leaves room for a non-motorized trail.

Link: Grand Trunk Relocation on Detroit-Pontiac Line, Engineering News-Record, October 21, 1932

Interestingly enough, the original plan was to build an “elevated motor speedway” above the rail lines. It was to be a toll road allowing motorists to travel between Pontiac and Detroit in under 30 minutes.

This was the vision of Joseph A. Bower and he had a good reason to build a highway to downtown.

He’d just built and opened the Ambassador Bridge.

MarketWatch has a recent article on the top ten “must-have” features that home buyers are looking for according to a recent survey.

The feature list includes nine home features (e.g. large kitchen) and one community amenity:

Community landscaping, with walking paths and playgrounds. Forget about golf courses, swimming pools and clubhouses. Buyers in large planned developments prefer hiking among lush greenery.

This is not surprising as trails have been among the most desired community amenities for years now.

Metromode ran a related article on greenspace preservation in Metro Detroit.

Norman Cox, president of The Greenway Collaborative, Inc., has consulted in the region for over 20 years, mostly on greenway, trail, open space, and non-motorized transportation planning. He’s worked with several communities and finds the environmental ethic ingrained in regional culture. “You’d be hard-pressed to find a recreation plan of a county or a significant-sized township or city that does not have an open space component,” he says. “They’re looking at things a lot more holistically, realizing that parks aren’t just points on a map, but how can they be part of a system that’s preserving a functioning natural system from water and wildlife standpoint as well as providing recreational resources.”

Community research consistently notes that residents, and would-be residents, want places to walk, bike, and safely move without having to use their automobile, Cox says. “If you are a community trying to be an attractive place to not only retain the businesses that are there but attract new businesses, it’s a good economic move to provide these resources. This is what people are looking for. Yes, there is a cost for developing and maintaining them but there is a good economic pay-back — as a matter of fact it’s almost a matter of survival these days.”

How do you create green space in a dense urban environment? You look for natural opportunities, such as an abandoned rail corridor, a riverside or waterfront, or other abandoned land. “Sometimes you have to be more creative,” says Cox. “We are big proponents of an urban greenway that utilizes the existing local street network. Most pedestrians and bicyclists have their secret ways to get from one place to another, using local roads, trails through schoolyards, and parks. We look at formalizing those.” Cox is currently working on the Clinton River Trail, which runs about 10-12 miles through five communities.

And speaking of Norm Cox and the Greenway Collaborative: They are part of a team (along with Smith JJR and the Active Transportation Alliance) to develop a plan which includes extending the RiverWalk east to the Conner Creek Greenway and beyond.